The Senate comes back to work this Monday, April 12. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has scheduled a cloture vote on the current 30-day unemployment extension for Monday at 5:30PM. Next Thursday, April 15 is the earliest that a final vote on the bill can be cast due to procedural rules governing objections to the bill – unless the Senate comes to an agreement before then, which is highly unlikely given Republican opposition to the extension.

Democrats need at least one Republican vote to pass the bill in the face of heavy partisan GOP opposition. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Scott Brown (R-MA) are potential candidates to move across the aisle on a vote, although neither has confirmed their vote to date.

Amidst all the noise and typical political bickering, it’s the votes that matter – watch out for next Thursday’s vote.